Job Discussion Forums

akolsky1 · Joined: 08 Mar 2009 Posts: 39 Location: Pennsylvania

There are 4 Special EFL LIFE Projects:Thailand, Beijing, China, and Korea and for a nominal administration fee one can take a TEFL course and get certified while staying in that country w/ some accomodation paid, airfare and other things paid. Does anyone have experience with this or know anything aboutthis? It just seems to good to be true, so want to check the legitamacy of this and if it really pays off/saves money. Seems like a good way to get TESOL certification and spend time in another country for a lower price. Many thanks.

Justin Trullinger · Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2009 4:34 pm Post subject:

Howsabout a link?

Best,
Justin

jay08hawks · Joined: 10 Mar 2009 Posts: 1

there are a few websites that offer this program. i too would like to know the legitimacy of it.

http://www.teflintl.com/thai_special_project.htm

http://www.specialthaiprojects.com/

http://www.tesolcoursethailand.com/special_thai_project_chiang_mai.shtml

there may be other websites too, these are just the first 3 i found.

Justin Trullinger · Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 3:48 pm Post subject:

I don't know anything about the program in question. The best info available would be if someone who has done the program could comment, but until they get here, I'll share what I do know, and make a few educated guesses.

THe price sounds really low. TI isn't making much money of charging you $750 for this program. This means that the $$ is coming from somewhere else- I'd say the most likely thing is that the school is paying TI for the placement. For the discounted TEFL course, you're probably "paying," in that your salary will be commensurately "modified."

I'm not sure where the "30,000 baht is a lot of money, 10000 is all some teachers get" info comes from. I've never worked in Thailand, mind, but everyone I know who has, tells me that 25000 to 35000 is about right for a foreign teacher. I can't see how 10000 would be possible- maybe they're comparing to Thai teachers here, which could be a misleading comparison.

As you said, it sounds too good to be true. Without knowing the situation, I'm just going to say that my experience is that if it seems too good to be true, it's either less good, or less true, than it sounds.

Also, in terms of getting the cert on the cheap, you usually get what you pay for. I have never taken a TEFL International course, nor worked on one. If you search the net about them, you will find that a lot of employers consider them to be "second-tier." I've met people who have done their courses, and the consensus seems to be that they can be good, but that quality varies a lot. I've had very limited experiences with this company, but most things in life tell me that if you get something for cheap, it's because it's something cheap.

Good luck and be careful,

Justin

akolsky1 · Joined: 08 Mar 2009 Posts: 39 Location: Pennsylvania

Thanks so much Justin for all the info you send me. Here are the links below. The Chinese Porject sounds like the best "deal" but you are right about the cheapness factor. i have no idea what TEFL courses are supposed to be prestigious/widely recognized and second tier. I only heard about Trinity and Cambridge being the most regarded--but they are pricey too. So I am just trying to find a creative way to teach. I have a teaching cert from my BA degree--but it is in elem. education, not ESL.
Check out these links and I welcome anyone to comment on what they think after reading this info.

http://www.tefllife.com/index.php/specialthaiproject
http://www.tefllife.com/index.php/specialbeijingprojecttesol
http://www.tefllife.com/index.php/specialchinesetesolproject

Regards,
Amy

Justin Trullinger · Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 11:35 pm Post subject:

Hi Amy-

Do you have any experience, or state teaching credential to go with that BA?

If so, you could probably find overseas teaching work without a TESOL certificate as a way to start. This could let you save some money for a decent qualification later on if you find that EFL is for you.

I know that Trinity and Cambridge are pricey. I don't believe they're the only names in the game, either. (I'm a teacher trainer with SIT, which is another provider with a decent rep, but also probably pricier than TEFL INternational.) THere are a lot of decent qualifications out there- do some googling and look at course content and course accreditation, and you should be able to find more variety of options.

If I were you, I'd be worried about the following with the programs you're looking at:

One way or another, I imagine you pay TEFL International for the cert. That's how bidness usually works. If they're not getting it from you direct, then maybe they're getting it from the schools- and you might be paid correspondingly less. (I don't know how the China salaries compare with what other people in the country are getting, but if I were you, I'd want to know that.) I can't claim to know where the catch is, or even to know that there is a catch, but it seems to me that by trying to get into this without start up costs, you could be setting yourself up in a negative situation.

I'd be worried about dedicating a substantial time period and commitment to getting a cert that may not open as many doors as some. And if the cert is less respected than some, I'd worry that it may be for a reason, and that I wouldn't get the same caliber of training.

Before you decide, if I were you I'd look around a see what I could get without the cert. Maybe I could save for a cert while working.

If there really isn't anything in the regions that you're interested in for an Elementary teacher without TESOL cert, which would surprise me greatly, I'd wait tables for an extra month and pay for a cert- because things that sound too good to be true frequently are.

Best,
Justin

akolsky1 · Joined: 08 Mar 2009 Posts: 39 Location: Pennsylvania

Thanks Justin. Good info. I think TEFL International is sound, but I just do not think I want to work in Asia. The one special prgram the aireare is provided and another it isn't. I think the countries are just desparate to get qualified TEFL teachers and so they are creating a program to accommodate for their needs--trying to make a win-win situatiuon. But I agree, I am not sure if TEFL International certification would open many doors later on or even be recognized if I want to teach elsewhere.

I appreciate all your insight!
Smile

Amy